Exploring the Impact of Matching E-Training Material to Arabic Dyslexia Type on Learners’ Reading Performance, Satisfaction and Behaviour

Abstract

Dyslexia is a reading difficulty that can be found everywhere, regardless of a person’s ethnicity or race. The manifestation of dyslexia depends on the structure and orthography of a language. There is a lack of research into Arabic dyslexia, particularly the benefits of adaptive learning in this area. The study presented in this paper aimed to understand the impact on learners’ reading performance, satisfaction and behaviour when matching e-training material with learner attributes. The focus is on learners with short vowel dyslexia. The study was undertaken with 22 female primary school children in Saudi Arabia, all of whom were native Arabic speakers. These children were divided into two groups: a matched group (which included learners with short vowel dyslexia) and a mismatched group (which included learners with vowel dyslexia). An e-training system ‘DysTypeTrain2’ was designed and developed to support the study. A mixed-methods approach was used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. The quantitative data were collected from (i) pre- and post-test results to calculate the improvement in reading performance and (ii) learner satisfaction scores. The qualitative data were collected from observations of learners’ behaviour. It was found that the learners’ reading performance and satisfaction improved in both experimental conditions (short vowel dyslexia group and vowel dyslexia group), regardless of their Arabic dyslexia type, indicating that the system was effective and the learning process was improved. Further, the learners were happy and excited about the system.